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Does a U.S. citizen working in Mexico have to pay taxes to the United States?

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I'm a U.S. citizen who lives in the U.S., but I'm going to be working in Mexico for a Mexican company. Do I still have to pay taxes in the U.S.?

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In addition to the Foreign Tax Credit, which @DilipSarwate mentioned, if you stay out of the U.S. for more than 330 days of the year, you can also use the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, with which you can exclude your first ~$95K of income from U.S. taxes.

In any case, you will still have to file U.S. tax returns, regardless of whether you actually have to pay any money.

answered Sep 23 '14 at 23:23

user1020082,268313

up vote3down vote

Since you are a US citizen, you have to pay US income tax on your world-wide income, but you do get to deduct (or take a tax credit for) taxes paid to other countries from the taxes you owe to the US. Tax treaties also affect such
matters. Also watch out for reporting requirements for foreign accounts that you have, or will likely have once you
start working in Mexico.

answered Sep 23 '14 at 16:35

Dilip Sarwate13.8k12247

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Does a U.S. citizen working in Mexico have to pay taxes to the United States?

up vote14down vote

I'm a U.S. citizen who lives in the U.S., but I'm going to be working in Mexico for a Mexican company. Do I still have to pay taxes in the U.S.?

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up vote9down vote

In addition to the Foreign Tax Credit, which @DilipSarwate mentioned, if you stay out of the U.S. for more than 330 days of the year, you can also use the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, with which you can exclude your first ~$95K of income from U.S. taxes.

In any case, you will still have to file U.S. tax returns, regardless of whether you actually have to pay any money.